Holleran would not say who came up with the idea for the call, only that “these things are often done collaboratively”.

He said 2Day FM would work with authorities, but was confident the station hadn’t broken any laws, noting that prank calls in radio have been happening “for decades”.

The DJ pair bragged about the stunt on Twitter after an initial apology
“They’re not just part of one radio station or one network or one country – they’re done worldwide,” he said

Supermarket giant Coles and telecoms firm Telstra both announced they are withdrawing their business from the station at the earliest opportunity, while Australian media are reporting that media company Optus is also reviewing its position.

The station later announced that it would pull all advertising from its airwaves with immediate effect.

The Australian Communications and Media Authority, which regulates the country’s media industry, said it had been inundated with complaints.

It will be looking at whether the DJs breached the Commercial Radio Code of Practice, part of which aims “to prevent the unauthorised broadcast of statements by identifiable persons”.

Meanwhile, a spokesman for Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard described the incident as a “terrible tragedy”.

During the hoax call, Greig impersonated the Queen and Christian mimicked Prince Charles and they managed to elicit details about the pregnant Duchess’ medical condition.

Driving instructor Jeff Sellick, who taught Ms Saldanha last year, said she was a “delight to teach”.

“I heard about it yesterday and it’s just such a shame she was such a nice person, I can only imagine what happened would have played heavily on her mind,” he told Sky News.

“I just feel for the family at this point because she must have been deeply traumatised by what happened to her.”

A fierce online storm erupted as soon as news of the nurse’s death emerged, with both presenters bombarded by messages on Twitter and the radio station’s own comment section deluged.

At the time, the station’s website had still been promoting the video of the prank call, but this was later removed.

Online critics called for the presenters to resign and some claimed they had “blood on their hands”.

Ms Saldanha, who had worked at the hospital for four years, was found dead at an address near King Edward VII’s Hospital in London on Friday morning.

Her family said in a statement: “We as a family are deeply saddened by the loss of our beloved Jacintha.”

A spokesman for Prince William and wife Kate said: “Their Royal Highnesses were looked after so wonderfully well at all times by everybody at King Edward VII’s Hospital, and their thoughts and prayers are with Jacintha Saldanha’s family, friends and colleagues at this very sad time.”

“At no point did the Palace complain to the hospital about the incident. On the contrary, we offered our full and heartfelt support to the nurses involved and hospital staff at all times.”

The King Edward VII’s Hospital said: “It is with very deep sadness that we confirm the tragic death of a member of our nursing staff, Jacintha Saldanha.

“Jacintha has worked at the King Edward VII’s Hospital for more than four years. She was an excellent nurse and well-respected and popular with all of her colleagues.

“We can confirm that Jacintha was recently the victim of a hoax call to the hospital. The hospital had been supporting her throughout this difficult time.”

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Welcome to the Art of the Prank, produced and edited by Joey Skaggs. Here you will find insights, information, news and discussions about art, pranks, hoaxes, culture jamming & reality hacking around the world - past, present and future - mainstream and counter culture. You are invited to contribute to its development. May your journey be filled with more than your expectations.